Hanging stained glass is the most popular way to display stand-alone art pieces, to do this you need to know how to attach a chain to stained glass.
Attaching a chain to stained glass is pretty simple, but there are some key points to keep in mind to ensure your hold is secure and will last over time. In this article we’ll do a deep dive into the basics, as well as some of the recommended materials I use for this step in the stained glass making process.
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Planning Jump Ring Placement
Jump rings (those small metal loops) should always be placed where there’s a soldered joint, not just anywhere along the perimeter of your piece. This provides the necessary structural stability and ensures the weight of your stained glass is properly supported. So it’s a good idea to plan for this placement allll the way at the beginning of the process – the design phase.
Design Your Stained Glass With Jump Rings in Mind
Applicable to:
- Round or free-form designs
- Tinned edges
If your stained glass artwork is round, or you are tinning your edges, you need to create your design with these solder joints in mind. If you don’t, you will get to the very end and not have a stable place on your stained glass piece to attach a chain to.
To better understand this, below are some illustrations of designs and their jump ring placements.
Note: Avoid the chain touching the stained glass piece when hung
This is a rookie mistake that I have made only once and learned from, but it definitely threw a major wrench in the piece I had created for a friend.
I don’t have an image of that piece to show what I did, but here is one of a piece I did last year where I planned for this in advance and made sure my chain wasn’t going to hang over the glass by creating longer-than-usual hooks for my chain.
Attach to Corners on Lead Came Borders
Applicable to:
- Straight edged designs WITH lead came border
If you plan to use a lead came border and your piece is of a square, rectangular, or any other straight sided shape, then you can take advantage of the structural support of the lead came and solder your jump rings to the top two corners.
Like so…
This is because the lead on either side is supported with two or more solder joints (ideally). Thus, the more solder joints you have connecting to the sides, the more structurally secure the piece is overall, and the sturdier the border is for holding the weight.
The minimum support you want to have is two solder joints, as seen in this commonly used stained glass border design:
Jump Ring Options
You can choose to purchase already-made jump rings, or make your own using tinned wire. There’s not much difference between the two, except you have more flexibility in choosing the shape and size when you make your own.
Purchasing Jump Rings
The most important thing about purchasing your jump rings is making sure you get the proper material. Most standard jewelry jump rings cannot be soldered. I actually cover all the metals that can be soldered if you want to have a better understanding. However, if you want to just know what jump rings to buy, just stick with these and you’ll be golden!.
Creating Your Own Jump Rings
If you want to create your own jump rings or u-shaped hooks, you can use a tinned wire. The thickness of the wire may depend on the size and weight of your piece. These are what I use:
- 18 gauge tinned wire for smaller pieces
- 14 gauge tinned wire for larger, heavier pieces
To create the shape and cut your wire you’ll need:
- Round nose pliers for shaping
- Wire cutter for, well… cutting
I purchased this tool kit that also comes with the little needle nose pliers. These are helpful for wrapping the larger gauge wire around the round nose pliers to get a tight, clean shape.
In reality you can create whatever kind of jump ring you want when you’re making your own, but the two most useful are the round and hook-shaped jump rings:
I personally use the round shaped rings on smaller pieces, and the hook shaped jump rings on larger pieces.
Soldering Jump Rings and Attaching Chains
It’s easiest to show how this is done in a video vs trying to explain it, so below is a video tutorial of me attaching chains to my stained glass.
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Conclusion
Attaching a chain to your stained glass artwork is a straightforward but important step in ensuring your piece is securely displayed. By planning jump ring placement carefully, considering the type of design, and using the right materials like tinned wire or pre-made jump rings, you can create a stable and durable hanging system.
If you’re curious about extra cautions to take when hanging heavier stained glass artworks, check out my article 5 Tips For Attaching Chains to Heavy Stained Glass.
